Title: Escape
Author: Shannon
Email: angels_soul_1@yahoo.com
Rating: G
Pairing: Dawn/Draco
Disclaimer: BtVS characters belong to Joss Whedon, ME, UPN, WB, and FOX. Harry Potter Characters belong to J.K. Rowling
Distribution: SoG (http://sog.magical-worlds.us/) Pensieve (http://hp.magical-worlds.us/) TtH, RI, anyone else that has previous permission for other fics feel free. Anyone else that wants it ask first but I’ve never said no.
Spoilers: BtVS through Chosen, HP probably nothing but OotP to be safe.
Summary: Dawn is trying escape her sister and wanders into a nightclub.
Author’s Notes: This is for the TtH Mid-year fic-a-thon. My assignment was for Polgara who requested Dawn/Draco, humor, romance, or adventure, but I sort of ended up more in fluff with a little humor.

Dawn jumped and spun around when a car backfired behind her. She knew there would be hell to pay when Buffy realized she was out tonight. Her sister had specifically said she couldn’t go; there was some vampire causing problems in town. Dawn was aware of the danger but most of her life had revolved around this kind of danger, she also felt that the threat wasn’t as great as it used to be for a two reasons; the first was that they were no longer on the Hellmouth, evil things were simply less evil away from it. The other reason was that Buffy was no longer the only slayer. The vampires of the world could spread out their hatred and need to prove themselves a little more now. There was still the occasional vamp or demon out to prove themselves by fighting the oldest slayer but those had been few and far between.

Dawn had made plans weeks before to go to a friend’s birthday party. Buffy had agreed at the time but had forgotten about it and made plans with her own friends and wouldn’t be available to walk over to the club with her. This wasn’t the first time something like this had happened. Dawn was glad her sister was finally able to have a somewhat normal life but she had grown tired of sacrificing her own life for it. She decided she was going to go to the party with or without Buffy’s permission.

Andrew was still staying with them which had made it a little more difficult but not impossible. After Buffy left she had feigned a headache and went into her bedroom. She knew it would be some time before Andrew checked on her so she had quickly changed clothes and snuck out a small window. It had taken some time to walk across town and her cell phone had been ringing for at least fifteen minutes so she was sure Andrew had realized she was gone and Buffy was on her way. She didn’t have much time to find the club and convince her friends to move to another one.

As she turned another corner she thought she caught a glimpse of Buffy rounding the corner on the other end of the block. She flattened against the brick wall and peered around the corner. “Damn,” she muttered as she saw her sister moving quickly toward her.

Suddenly a door flung open next to her and several people flooded out of the building onto the street. She had thought the building was deserted at least it had been the last time she was over here. Turning to look next to her she saw that it had a large window filled with broken mannequins and signs. Before she could give any thought to what the people that were turning down the alley had been doing in the empty building several more people walked out laughing and talking loudly. Dawn realized that all these people were dressed oddly but another glance round the corner told her she didn’t have time to worry about it if she didn’t want to be caught by a very angry slayer. She grabbed the door as the last person exited, and slipped inside.

Dawn’s eyes widened as the door swung closed behind her. She had walked into a club of some kind. One that she was sure was not there before. It certainly didn’t fit with the window she had seen from the outside. She moved further into the building squinting to see in the dark, there were candles in sconces lining all the walls and other light over the dance floor although she couldn’t quite figure out where the source was. She also didn’t recognize the music playing, that didn’t surprise her though, she and Buffy had been here almost two years and she still hadn’t fully grasped Italian. A large group of people swarmed through the door pushing her toward the bar as they moved.

“Can I help you?” The man behind the bar asked as Dawn was shoved against it.

“Um… coke I guess,” Dawn yelled to be heard over the music.

“I’m sorry?” The man frowned.

Dawn returned the frown; the man spoke to her in English so it obviously wasn’t a language issue, so why was he acting as if he didn’t understand what she was asking for. “You don’t have coke?”

“No,” he responded.

“Okay then what do you have?” Dawn asked still not understanding his confusion. Then it was her turn to look confused when she began naming several drinks she had never heard of.

“I’d try a butterbeer if I were you,” said a voice behind her.

“Excuse me?” Dawn spun around to locate the very British sounding voice behind her. She immediately smiled at the tall blonde man watching her.

“You don’t seem familiar with the drinks, I was making a suggestion,” he smirked, “However if you’re not interested…”

Dawn reached out and grabbed his arm as he turned to walk away. There was no way she was letting this guy leave without finding out who he was. She met very few people that spoke English at all and fewer still that weren’t American military kids. It had seemed like a good idea when Buffy had contacted Riley and he had pulled strings to get her into the school on a nearby military base but sometimes she wished she had friends that stuck around longer and lived closer. “Wait I just wasn’t expecting…you’re British.”

“Yes,” he smiled, “Draco Malfoy.”

“Dawn Summers,” she returned the smile, “You said butterbeer?”

He called the bartender over and ordered her a drink as well as one for himself. “Are you here alone?”

“Um…I didn’t intend to be here,” Dawn explained, “I’m supposed to be meeting friends down the street but then I saw my sister coming down the street and this door opened and how is this a club yet looks like a deserted store from the outside?”

Draco frowned at her question. Any decent witch would know how that worked. They couldn’t have muggles just wandering in accidentally so it was hidden by wards. Everyone knew that, unless… no, it wasn’t possible. She couldn’t have even seen the door if she wasn’t a witch. These things were well hidden.

“You aren’t a witch?” He asked confused.

“Me?” Dawn raised an eyebrow in surprise, “Nope, I mean I’ve floated a pencil and Willow tried showing me some basic stuff but…”

Draco stepped back in surprise; he had seen her enter the club looking confused and lost. He had come over assuming she was simply from out of town and had wandered in accidentally; it had never occurred to him that she was muggle. Then again she couldn’t be completely muggle or she wouldn’t have seen the door at all. She would’ve simply seen the people appearing on the street. “Willow?” He asked the name sounding vaguely familiar.

“Yeah, uh she’s a friend from Sunnydale, she’s like Super Witch,” Dawn smiled.

“But you’re not?” He prompted still not sure how she found the door, “If you aren’t a witch you shouldn’t have been able to find this place at all.”

“Really,” Dawn asked in surprise, “So then my sister won’t be able to find me?”

“Not unless she has some unknown power too,” he assured her. “I don’t understand how you weren’t found as a child, unless the American Ministry is different.”

Dawn smiled again; she was glad that she finally had someone in her life that had some idea what hers was about. Not that she could be sure he knew about slayers and demons, but he knew magic existed so it raised the odds in her favor. As for why she wasn’t found as a child, it probably had a lot to do with having never technically been a child. She wasn’t sure she wanted to try to explain that to Draco just yet though, telling a guy you’re really just a big ball of green energy probably wasn’t the best way to keep his attention.

“You’re from Sunnydale?” Draco asked. “Isn’t that where that Slayer was from, the one that shut down the Hellmouth?”

“Yeah,” Dawn smiled, he did know about slayers, “She’s my sister actually.”

“So you’re hiding from a slayer then?” Draco asked raising an eyebrow, “Doesn’t seem like someone you’d want to make angry.”

“I’m her sister,” Dawn grinned, “I’m required to irritate her. I do need to figure out how to get back home without her finding me.”

“If she’s looking for you doesn’t she already know you left?”

“Not necessarily. She may not have been home, which means I would just have to convince her that Andrew was wrong,” Dawn explained, “Not that hard to believe really.”

Draco considered what she had said for a moment. Dawn may not be aware of the wizarding world but she was part of it some ways. Her sister was a slayer, to many she was The Slayer. That made her part of the magical world. He wanted to get to know her better but there was a chance her sister could find this place, the same way Dawn did, just by having her attention drawn to it.

If he helped her get home he would be able to spend more time with her, and he would know where she lived so he could find her again later. Sure it would irritate his father, Dawn wasn’t a pure-blood, although, a slayer was considered to be a pure source of power and magic, despite the muggle heritage. He wasn’t sure he really cared about his father’s opinion anymore, he was in Azkaban and would probably remain there for the rest of his life. Quickly making a decision he turned his attention back to the girl next to him.

“I can get you home fast and no one will see you,” he offered.

“How?”

“Tell me where you need to be and I can apparate us there,” he clarified.

Dawn grinned and gave him the address to their apartment. “Can you put us in my room in case Buffy or Andrew are home again?”

“I can try,” he said, “I can’t promise, it’s harder when it’s an unfamiliar location.”

He pulled her closer to him as she set her empty glass on the bar and they quickly disappeared with a loud pop. A few seconds later Dawn pulled away from him looking slightly green. “Are you alright?”

“Okay that so wasn’t fun,” Dawn said sitting on her bed and holding her head.

“It gets easier with time, and when you’re not the one just along for the ride,” Draco replied glancing around the room, at the pictures of Dawn with various people. “Did I get you to the correct room?”

Dawn raised her head and glanced around the room for the first time. It was her room. “Yeah this is it. Thanks.”

Before Draco could respond the door flung open and a very angry blonde woman strode into the room carrying a rather large looking axe. “Dawn, where have you been?” She hadn’t even spared him a glance.

“I’ve been here Buffy,” Dawn grinned, winking at Draco. “Why?”

“Andrew said you weren’t here,” Buffy said dropping the axe on the bed before noticing the man in the corner, “Who are you?”

“This is my friend Draco,” Dawn said moving closer to him, “When you said I couldn’t leave I invited him over, that’s okay right?”

“Oh well, you shouldn’t have,” Buffy stuttered obviously not sure that she believed her sister’s story but also not knowing how to disprove it, “I can’t believe Andrew let you bring a guy in your room.”

Dawn giggled and her sister grabbed the axe and went in search of Andrew to most likely yell at him for Draco being in her room. Sometimes she enjoyed the fact that for a slayer her sister didn’t always assume a supernatural problem. She also found herself very grateful that Willow and Xander didn’t live here. She was afraid Willow would’ve seen right through the lie.

“I should probably be going,” Draco said, “I can’t believe your sister believed…”

“She believes what she wants to,” Dawn grinned, “Will you be in Rome a while then?”

“Count on it.”

Before Dawn could answer he disappeared with another loud pop.